A Nostalgic Korean Summer

The K-League All Stars game is a regular part of the Korean football calendar and a much-loved fixture at that. The format changes as in the past, northern teams have played southern teams, the K-League team has played J-League counterparts and two years ago, even Barcelona provided the opposition.

This time though, the team lining up against the All-Stars on July 5, made up of players who won the most votes in a nationwide poll, are special. It is the 2002 World Cup team. As this month marks the tenth anniversary of that glorious run to the semi-final, the authorities have seen fit to mark the occasion with what should be a sell-out exhibition at Seoul World Cup Stadium, where the run came to an end at the hands of Germany.

It is being organized by the star of the show Ahn Jung-hwan. The recently retired striker who headed Italy out of the competition on that unforgettable night in Daejeon, an incredible night in both football terms and what happened in the country in the following hours and days, is heading the marketing campaign. He has already been seen calling captain Hong Myong-bo who then gets hold of Guus Hiddink. Both will be present.

It remains to be seen if Park Ji-sung will make it though it doesn’t look likely and Lee Young-pyo will be busy in MLS with Vancouver Whitecaps. Most of the others will be there – Seol Ki-hyeon, Kim Nam-il and Lee Woon-jae are still active in the K-League while the likes of Ahn and Song Chung-guk have just recently retired. Hwang Sun-hong and Yoo Sang-chul, who scored in the opening round 2-0 win over Poland, are now K-League coaches with Pohang Steelers and Daejeon Citizen respectively.

It promises to be quite a night.  

FA Cup fighting

There was a good deal of hand-wringing after the fist-flinging at Seoul World Cup Stadium on June 20 in the fourth round of the FA Cup between bitter rivals FC Seoul and Suwon Bluewings. Once again, Suwon got the better of the capital club with a 2-0 win although the goals will not be remembered long. What will stick in the memory are 42 fouls, one red card (and there really should have been more with some of the wild challenges) and the mass brawl that broke out at the end of the game.

It didn’t stop there as Korean media reported that a Seoul marketing officials was hospitalized by a member of the Suwon staff. After a fifth straight defeat against Suwon, a number of Seoul fans then protested outside the stadium against their own team (sitting top of the league at this point) and lay down in front of the team bus.  

Back to the league

Jeonbuk Motors are the form team at the moment with five straight wins which contained 19 goals. Chile recruit Hugo Droguett has found his feet in the league and is starting to shine after a slow start. Lee Dong-gook is never far from the scoresheet and netted a hat-trick in a recent 5-3 win at home to Gyeongnam FC, goals 124, 125 and 126 in the K-League. Nobody has scored more.

 There are worries for Seongnam. Three straight defeats in the league and an elimination from the FA Cup, the club’s best hope of a place in the 2013 Asian Champions League (they were eliminated from the 2012 version recently) have put the pressure on Shin Tae-young. If it wasn’t for the fact that he had led the team to the 2010 Asian title, he may be in a little danger. As it is, he can stand by the sidelines looking annoyed.

There have been many changes at the club since that 2010 win and just as the team was starting to settle in the second half of 2011, there was another raft at the end of the season. Too many good players have left for the liking of fans who have demanded a meeting with the club.

Daejeon Citizen seem to going in the opposite direction. A truly dreadful start to the season in which they lost nine out of the first ten games, had everyone tipping the Purple Emperors for the drop. But three wins out of the last four – including a 3-0 victory at Seongnam – have seen Yoo Sang-cheol’s men start to pull away from the basement.

Belgian striker Kevin Oris has started to look very good and if former injury-prone national team midfielder Kim Hyeung-beom can keep fit and scoring the kind of screamer that did for Seongnam, the future may be bright.

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Park And Koo Say Goodbye To Korea

It was apt. On the day that Park Ji-sung announced his retirement from the South Korean national team, leaving the way open for even more young players, then 21 year-old midfielder Koo Ja-cheol was bidding farewell to Jeju United and heading to Europe to join 2009 German champions VfL Wolfsburg.

Park’s goodbye was more emotional and marks the end of an era. After making his 100th appearance in the semi-final of the 2011 Asian Cup that ended in a penalty shootout defeat at the hands of eventual champion Japan, Park confirmed that he wouldn’t be seen in the famous red shirt of his nation again in order to prolong his career in another red shirt, that of Manchester United.

Even at the far-from-ancient age of 29, Park feels that the lengthy journeys from Manchester to Seoul don’t do his body any favours and it can be safely assumed that his English employers are not against this decision.

"I think I could have continued my international career without health issues," Park said, blinking in front of hundreds of flashlights at KFA House in Seoul. "But I will accept the situation as it is and I have no regrets. Because of our geographic location, I've had to travel long ways from Europe to play (in South Korea). But to be competitive in the world, we have to travel around the world and players from now on should take care of themselves."

Try as he might, he couldn’t convince the assembled press pack that he doesn’t plan to make a dramatic comeback at the 2014 World Cup when he will be 33.

“If we make it to the World Cup in Brazil, then players who worked hard during the qualification should get the chance to play," Park said. "They will improve as players through World Cup experience. I don't think I will ever be back with the national team."

Park knows the Korean media well enough to know that it won’t be that simple. He will be fine for the next 12 months as there are few important duties for the national team but as Brazil 2014 starts to move into view that will change. There will be calls, demands and then pleas for his return especially if he is still playing well with Manchester United. Indeed, the name of Zinedine Zidane, who famously returned to the French national team ahead of the 2006 World Cup, has been in the headlines in the Korean media with a frequency not seen since that infamous headbutt in the final against Italy.

Koo Ja-cheol has his European experience ahead of him. Last year was when the mild-mannered midfielder really started to rise to prominence in the Land of the Morning Calm. From the centre, his five goals and 12 assists not only helped his club Jeju United, into second place in the K-league and within touching distance of a first title, but confirmed his place as one of the nation’s top prospects.

It didn’t quite happen in 2010. A trial with English Premier League club Blackburn Rovers early in the year didn’t quite work out and while he was named in the preliminary squad for the World Cup in South Africa, Koo was cut from the final 23.

The recently finished Asian Cup was a different story however. Even before it started, the player had come close to joining Swiss team Young Boys of Berne but after finishing as the tournament’s top scorer with five goals, other suitors threw their hats into the ring. One came from VfL Wolfsburg. The German team, backed by Volkswagen, won the 2009 title but is struggling this season at the wrong end of the standings. And have now just sacked former head coach of the English national team Steve McClaren.

But Koo, who will join up with Japanese national team captain Makoto Hasebe, is ready for the challenge. “Now I am at the starting line again. The facilities and team atmosphere was great. I feel very happy now as I was trying so hard to play in Europe.”

“Now I will concentrate on playing well out there. Lee Young-pyo and many national team mates advised me to play in Europe. Though my original position is defensive midfielder, I am ready to play in any position the coach asks.”

It just remains to be seen who that coach is but such is life in Europe.




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All aboard the K-Train?

He's one of the most in-demand players in Europe, plays as an attacking talent for Japan and proved decisive in their 3-2 quarter-final win over hosts Qatar at the Asian Cup.

And his name is not Keisuke Honda.

Japan relied heavily on Borussia Dortmund star Shinji Kagawa to see off the stubborn Qataris in a pulsating quarter-final, as the diminutive playmaker scored twice and set up the winner for Masahiko Inoha in a come-from-behind victory.

The Samurai Blue were forced to dig deep after defender Maya Yoshida was harshly dismissed in front of a partisan Qatari crowd, and Kagawa proved the difference in a virtuoso display.

But while the youngster was impressing in front of a global audience, what of Keisuke Honda, the player allegedly being chased by a host of English Premier League clubs?

Honda has had a quiet tournament to date, missing the group stage thrashing of Saudi Arabia through injury amid rumours he had fallen out with new coach Alberto Zaccheroni.

And having only scored once in the tournament so far - and that goal arrived from the penalty spot - Honda will be desperate to fire his team past arch-rivals South Korea and into the final.


Japan's semi-final clash with South Korea is one of the most anticipated games of the tournament, with the winner set to meet either Australia or Uzbekistan in the final.

The Samurai Blue met South Korea three times in 2010, losing twice and drawing once, and they'll be desperate to reach their first Asian Cup final since winning the tournament in Beijing in 2004.

Japan fans will no doubt hope CSKA Moscow star Honda can use some of his big-match experience to steer his side into the showpiece event, but it will be a far from simple task against a fired-up South Korea.

With Park Ji-Sung enjoying an outstanding tournament for the Taeguk Warriors, only one will be left standing as two of Asian football's biggest names go head-to-head in an Asian Cup semi-final cracker.

Copyright © Mike Tuckerman & Soccerphile.com


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Old Rivals Meet With New Faces On Board

They say that familiarity breeds contempt but that is not the feeling that will be paramount at Seoul World Cup Stadium on Tuesday when South Korea meet Japan for the third time this year. Although the World Cup is still fresh in the memory, both nations are looking firmly forward to the Asian Cup that starts in less than three months.

It is barely three months since the two teams left South Africa in high spirits after reaching the second round for the first time ever on foreign soil.

That was a very pleasant surprise for fans and media in Japan. If you were present at the National Stadium in Tokyo on May 25, you would have seen the men in blue lose at home to Korea for the second time in a matter of weeks. The 2-0 victory for the Taeguk Warriors flattered the hosts rather than the visitors and the Samurai Blue left the field amid the familiar contemptuous jeers of the home support. Japan’s preparations for South Africa had been almost disastrous with defeat following defeat and the entire nation was planning for the pain that was sure to come under the African sun.

It didn’t happen as Japan shocked those back home and a fair few others around the world by winning two of its three group games against Cameroon and then, memorably, against Denmark. A 3-1 win over the Europeans included two masterful free-kicks from the feet of Keisuke Honda and Yasuhito Endo that sent Samurai Blue screaming into the last sixteen. A place in the last eight beckoned but Paraguay triumphed in a penalty shootout after 120 minutes of soccer ended goalless.

Suddenly beleaguered coach Takeshi Okada was a hero though he had already decided not to stay on in the Tokyo hotseat. He was eventually replaced by Italian coach Alberto Zaccheroni and this is the second game for the former AC Milan and Juventus boss. As well as a different tactician on the bench, this is a different Japan team than the one which limply lost to its bitter rival in February and May and it is one that has just defeated Argentina.

“My mission is to cultivate Japanese talent on a long-term basis. I’m going to build a team with sights set on the World Cup in Brazil.” said Zaccheroni. “The new players have shown good performance this month and I and my staff observed this. I want to emphasize a balance between attack and defense.”

That attack is led by Honda, one of the stars of South Africa. He may be the best known but he is just one of a new influx of Japanese stars in Europe impressing their new fans. Shinji Kagawa didn’t even go to the World Cup but the former Cerezo Osaka midfielder is wowing the fans at German giants Borussia Dortmund.

Kagawa is just starting out in the big leagues while Park Ji-sung has been playing out west for eight years now. Still only 29, the Manchester United man told me recently that he is determined to help Korea win the Asian title for the first time since 1960, a poor record for a team that boasts the continent’s best World Cup record.

That team is about to play its third game under new coach Cho Kwang-rae. Coach Cho has overseen one win, against Nigeria in Suwon in August, and one loss, against Iran in Seoul last month. A second successive defeat at home would put Cho on the backfoot but a win and all would be looking good ahead of games at the Asian Cup with Australia, Bahrain.

Much of the talk before the match was on how Cho would utilise Park Ji-sung. The Manchester United man had been a little isolated in attack against Iran and the coach planned to move him back to midfield. A knee injury has ruled the player out of the match.

Instead Cho hopes that a number of young players that have been impressing at home can make a difference.

“Players like Kim Shin-wook, Yoo Byung-soo and Koo Ja-cheol among others, are capable players with many positive features to their games,” said Cho at a press conference yesterday. “I’ve been watching their play in the K-League consistently and selected them because of their solid play.”

A good result is always needed against Japan but with the Asian Cup looming ever closer, there is more at stake than regional pride. Continental glory is just around the corner.

© John Duerden & Soccerphile

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Busy, Busy, Busy

Korean football fans have a two-tier season. Not only does the K-League run from the end of February to the beginning of December, the European season and the overseas Taeguk Warriors, just recovered from the World Cup, are just getting started.

The best-known of these is, of course, Park Ji-sung. When he signed for Manchester United back in July 2005, few would have expected that he would be embarking on a sixth season at one of the world’s biggest clubs. This campaign promises to be one of the most open seasons in the English Premier League for years with the usual suspects such as United, Chelsea and Arsenal battling for the top prize with big spenders Manchester City adding an interesting extra element.

Park enjoyed a very good World Cup in South Africa and can expect to enjoy a fair amount of playing time over the next few months. The 29 year-old played a big part in the second half of the season last time round as United finished second behind Chelsea but struggled in the first half due to injuries sustained while in action for the national team.

So the sight last Wednesday of Park sitting on the bench in the second half of South Korea’s friendly match against Nigeria with ice strapped around his knee would have been a worry for fans of the Red Devils but Park is fit and raring to go, though he sat out the team's 3-0 opening match win over Newcastle United on Monday night.

Interest is always high in Park’s exploits with the 18-time English champions, now looking for a record 19th title, but many eyes will also be fixed just a few miles north of Manchester to see how Lee Chung-yong performs with Bolton Wanderers.

The winger joined the club in the summer of 2009 and immediately impressed. He was one of Bolton’s best players and contributed with five goals and a number of assists. What was more impressive is that Lee, still just 22, arrived at the start of the English season after over six months of football in Korea. The recent rest he had after the 2010 World Cup was his first break since the end of 2008. And after a good performance in South Africa, he is ready for another good season.

I had the chance recently to have to talk to Park Ji-sung at the National Football Center in Paju and he was fulsome in praise for his young national team colleague.

“He showed last season unbelievably well in the Premier League with Bolton,” said Park. “And then with the national team as well. He is a player who is getting bigger in the national team as well. So, hopefully, he will get more experience and he can take my place.

“He is very talented. He has good skills, a good mentality and is good physically, he may not be physically strong yet but he can learn all that. He is smart and, hopefully, can continue growing in this way to become the best player in our country.”

The Seoul media is also a fan of Lee but is concerned that he may fall victim to second season syndrome as he is no longer an unknown quantity. That remains to be seen though Lee himself recently admitted that he was taken aback at just how well his first season in England went.

“At first I was worried because it was my first time playing in a European league. But I was so surprised that everyone was welcoming, my team-mates and the fans," said Lee.

"My ambition was to play as many games as I could. Now I have done that, I am proud of what I have achieved. The pressure was not on me as there was no expectation as I was unknown here. I like a quiet life so living in England suits me as player."

North of the border, two World Cup stars play for Scottish giants Celtic. Ki Sung-yong arrived in Glasgow in January. The 21 year-old didn’t get much playing time but that looks likely to change this time around as he has been active in midfield in the club’s pre-season. He has been joined at Parkhead by right-back Cha Du-ri.

The remaining veteran of South Africa playing in Europe is Park Chu-young. The striker, just turned 25, impressed at the World Cup after two good seasons in France with AS Monaco. He could be on the move before the August 31 deadline.

Moves to England are still rumoured but not with the same intensity of a month ago. Still, in football, you never quite know what will happen and that is the beauty of the game as will be demonstrated once more over the coming months –both in Europe and Korea.

Copyright: John Duerden & Soccerphile.com



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Huh Steps Down From Korea Job

Back in September 2008 when South Korea struggled to a 1-1 draw with North Korea in the opening match of the final round of qualification for 2010 World Cup, few would have thought that the departure of coach Huh Jung-moo would be a cause for sadness and concern.

Almost two years ago, the issue was all about whether a lacklustre looking eleven would reach South Africa at all - last week Huh admitted that he considered resigning after the Shanghai stalemate. In the end, there was little need to worry as the Taeguk Warriors marched into the last 16 of an overseas World Cup for the first time ever and can even regard themselves a little unlucky to go down 2-1 to Uruguay in Port Elizabeth.

The players left the Rainbow Nation with their heads held high and Huh leaves his post in similarly upright fashion. The 2-0 win over Greece started the campaign in style and the incisive football and the pleasing technical ability of the players were hailed around the world. The 4-1 defeat against Argentina came against a team at the top of its game and the 2-2 tie with Nigeria that sent Korea into the Promised Land may not have been a perfect display but it was thrilling entertainment - not least for the 500,000 or so fans who took to the streets at 3.30 in the morning.

If there are any regrets it comes in the form of the knockout match against a solid Uruguay team. Trailing to an early goal, Korea pushed the South American semi-finalists evermore on to the backfoot. Lee Chung-yong grabbed an equalizer and the Asian team had chances to score again both before and after Luis Suarez’s late strike that eventually won the game.

It was expected that Huh would step down after the tournament but the success of the team prompted hopes and then reports that he may stay on at least for long enough to lead the team to the Asian Cup in January. The theory was that with the same coach and a similar set of players then Korea has a genuine chance of winning the continental competition for the first time since 1960.

Last Friday however, Huh finally confirmed that he was vacating the hotseat.
"I'm out of competition for the job," he told reporters in Seoul. "I've reached this early decision so the KFA won't have much burden in choosing the next national team coach."

"It's not exactly resignation because my contract expired at the end of the Korean World Cup campaign," he said. "I'm content with what the national team has achieved this time. Now I would like some time to recharge with my family."

It was not easy for the braver of his relatives who read some of the criticism that came Huh’s way during the early stages of qualification and then a shock 3-0 loss against China in February –the first time ever that Korea had lost to its giant neighbor. Overall though, Huh will be remembered well.

After the slow start, the team picked up and qualified smoothly for the World Cup despite being placed in a tough group. Then the World Cup itself was a success with Korean players such as Park Chu-young, Park Ji-sung and Lee Chung-yong winning plaudits in the international media.

Huh also demonstrated that going local can pay dividends. There may have been concern within the KFA a couple of years ago at the way things were going but the body stuck with its coach and was rewarded with a place in the second round. Financially the World Cup is very important to the KFA and doing well just increases those benefits. The same can be said of the fact that this success wasn’t achieved by a big-name highly-paid foreign coach but by the man who was taken from K-League club Chunnam Dragons. Huh’s success is going to make it more likely the next man is Korean.

The KFA’s international committee deals with such matters and meets on Wednesday for initial discussions. As usual in these matters, the media has got there first. Hong Myong-bo, the captain of the 2002 team that reached the semifinals would be a popular choice but the ‘eternal libero’ is in charge of the 2012 London Olympics challenge, has never coached a club team and has already said ‘thanks but no thanks.’

There are few other options that spring to mind. Kim Hak-bom enjoyed success with Seongnam Ilhwa before stepping down in December 2008 and he is available and has experience of winning the K-League. Huh’s assistant Jung Hae-sung is also in the frame.

Others, both domestic and foreign will be added over the coming days and weeks.

Copyright: John Duerden & Soccerphile.com

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South Korea Squeeze Into The Second Stage

It is 56 years since South Korea first travelled to the World Cup. It wasn't a good experience. Five subsequent overseas appearances all ended with the same result - an early exit. Only 2002, on home soil, saw a surge past the first round and into the semi-finals.

That all changed on Tuesday as the Koreans booked their place in the second round of the 2010 World Cup with a 2-2 draw with Nigeria in Durban on Tuesday evening to go past the first round for the first time ever away from Asia.

Korea finished second in Group B behind Argentina and take on Uruguay on Saturday in Port Elizabeth with a place in the quarterfinal at stake.

The outcome was in doubt until the final seconds in an entertaining and tense encounter with Nigeria missing a number of great opportunities that could have seen the Africans in the knockout stage.

With Argentina defeating Greece 2-0, Korea started the evening in second on three points but soon found itself behind thanks to Kalu Uche. Lee Jung-soo equalized just before the break and not long after Park Chu-young put Korea ahead. A penalty from Yakubu Aiyegbeni leveled the scoreline once again to ensure a very nervous finish.

Just what Korea didn’t want to happen happened after 12 minutes as a simple but very avoidable goal was conceded.

Chidi Odiah was allowed to run down the right side but his low cross perhaps should have been cleared by Cha Du-ri. Instead the German-based defender allowed Kalu Uche to get in front of him to stab the ball home from close range.

It was a big blow for the Koreans who had started well. After Nigeria had lost their first two matches in the group, confidence was suddenly coursing through the veins of the green-shirted Super Eagles and the more powerful African team started to get a grip on the game.

The goalscorer went very close from outside the area ten minutes before the break as he drove a low shot firmly that went past goalkeeper Jung Sung-ryung but not the base of his left hand post

Just two minutes later, Korea drew level with a goal from nowhere. Lee Young-pyo was fouled just outside the right edge of the African penalty area to give Huh Jung-moo’s men another free-kick. Ki Sung-yung’s free-kick evaded everyone except for the unmarked Lee Jung-soo at the far post who bundled the ball over the line in a somewhat ungainly but, for those watching in East Asia, delicious fashion.

Half-time came with the contest finely balanced but it swung heavily in Korea’s favor just three minutes into the second half. Another free-kick was given away by the men in green and from the left corner of the penalty box, Park Chu-young curled a shot into the far corner of the Nigerian goal.

Nigeria started to push forward, the team had to. Yakubu Aiyegbeni was about to shoot from close range only to be robbed by Lee Jung-soo while Park Chu-young forced a good save from Vincent Enyeama.

And then with 24 minutes remaining, Yakubu somehow missed the easiest opportunity of the 2010 World Cup. Once again Cha Du-ri allowed his man to get past him and a low cross was rolled across the face of the Korean goal and Yakubu shot wide from two metres out.

It didn’t signal the end of Nigerian hopes as shortly after, recently introduced sub substitute Kim Nam-il clumsily fouled Chinedu Obasi and Yakubu, who plays his club football for Everton in the English Premier League, scored the resultant penalty to level the scoreline at 2-2.

To their credit, the Korean players hit back and went close through Lee Chung-yong and Park Ji-sung but with ten minutes remaining, Nigerian substitute Obafemi Martins went closer, breaking free in to the penalty area to lift the ball over the advancing Jung. The ball bounced just wide of the post.

That was as close as the Nigerians got and soon after the final whistle sounded to spark Korean celebrations in Durban and back in the Land of the not-so-Morning Calm.

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